The definition of a gastropub, as Adam Platt points out in his E.U. review this week, is open to question. But there’s no doubt that even the most broadly defined one is an upgrade over a bar with bad food, or no food at all. The Half-Pint, on West 3rd Street, will soon be pouring hand-drawn cask ale and over 60 kinds of bottled beer for NYU students and other locals, as well as administering a better-than-it-has-to-be food program. Chef-owner Mark Whelan’s menu includes fried Wisconsin cheese curds, crusted yellowfin tuna over salad, and some creative rethinkings of familiar bar standards, such as a ground-bratwurst burger, and a Reuben pizza with French dressing, sauerkraut, pastrami, and Swiss cheese. (For our part, we plan to stick to cask ale and traditional bar pies with Esposito sausage and cremini mushrooms. At least for the first few pints.) The Half Pint is slotted to open Memorial Day weekend.
The Half-Pint, 76 W. 3rd St., nr. Thompson St.; no phone yet.The Half Pint menu

We didn’t think things could get any lovelier at the Dove, pretty much the only bar around NYU that doesn’t make us want to strangle ourselves with a beer funnel — and, of course, our recent pick for best first-date bar. But lo and behold, our last visit revealed a new food menu. (It joins the glorious ranks of the other menus in the database you may have heard us make mention of.) It’s no surprise nachos aren’t on offer — remember, this place mixes its cocktails with soy milk. Instead, there are “tiers” of tea sandwiches and toasts made with ingredients like mushroom pâté, pine-nut-watercress pesto, heirloom beats, and black-truffle shavings. Plus, they now have a cheese plate and a selection of “delights.” So what exactly is a delight? Well, have a look for yourself.
The Dove’s Menu [Menus]
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